In Search of Black Male Teachers

It seems that the search for black male teachers is yet another area where our community is lacking. Of all the teachers in America, write CNN reporters Allen Huntspon and George Howell, only about 2 percent are black males. In their article, “Black Male Teachers Becoming Extinct,” Huntspon and Howell extol the casual benefits for African-American children of having those kinds of strong role models, but there are a number of reasons for the lack of black male teachers. Among them is that it is difficult to support a family on a teacher’s salary.

Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, is hoping to make teaching more attractive to black males by instituting a couple of innovations. RESPECT Project offers “incentives to teachers and school districts that will increase starting salaries and provide more professional development and training among other things.” The Teach Campaign is designed “to recruit more African-American men to go into teaching straight out of college.” Of course, we’ve got to get more of them to go to college, but these are steps in the right direction.